Learn One Thing A Day

Today I learnt why cats do purr. In a nutshell: purring is a kind of self-medication. Probably. Let's see why. Cats purr not only when we stoke them but also in other moments in their life, as when they nurse their kittens or ... when they are in pain or near to death! These facts seem to tell us that purring has nothing to do with happiness, or with the pleasure to be with us... Cats purr by pulsing muscles in their larynx and diaphragm. The resulting vibrations have frequencies between 25 and 150 Hz.  Interestingly, scientific studies have shown that exposure to this frequency range can improve bone density and promote healing... hence the conclusion: purring is a kind of self-medication! This makes a lot of sense, since these adorable creatures are quite lazy (unlike dogs, cats do not like to chase balls) and nevertheless they stay healthy (even without physical exercise!) Amazing! References: http://www.scientificamerican.com/ SciShow Video

In the last two seasons of how I met your mother, there are some Italian words/dialogues. Here are the most important elements HIMYM 8x21 - Romeward Bound. The full episode in English is available here In this episode of How I Met Your Mother, the first Italian words appear... Scuncigli OR sconcigli : it's a kind of pasta, with a seashell shape. Gigi ... alla porta : Gigi (it's a man name), let's go to the door. Marshall in Little Italy says  Maronn! namely Madonna and corresponds to the English expression "Oh My God!" ... ( you have how I much I laughed after having watched this scene!!! ) In the last scene, when Marshall talks with Lily, he says "Andiamo, fratello. Non mangiarti tutti i Funions" (Come on, bro. Don't Bogart all the Funions) NOTE 1: As Italian, I have to tell you that his pronunciation is really really bad! And it's interesting about this point, the comment available below ;) NOTE 2:

Meet Destin from Smarter Every Day and discover the amazing properties of the Prince Rupert's Drop! What happens when you drip molten glass into cold water? The glass forms a tadpole structure (a bulb with a tail) with a very peculiar strain structure at the inside: the drop won't break if you hit the bulb with a hammer  but even a small damage (a swing or tiny crack) on the tail will cause the whole structure to break... exposively ! Take a seat and be ready to be fascinated! Source: SmarterEveryDay Channel wikipedia

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Thanks to the youtube, today I learnt that chicken heads have a very sofisticated gyroscopic system! Watch the cool videos below, it's some really amazing stuff! The same guy got also the idea to mount a camera on a chicken head, you know... to make a chicken powered steedycam... and here is the result! Sources: Youtube Channel: Smarter Every Day http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dPlkFPowCc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UytSNlHw8J8